ISLAMABAD  -  The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) registered 2,933 new companies during August 2024, marking a 3% increase compared to the corresponding month last year and signifying the highest number of companies incorporated in a single month. The total number of companies registered with SECP now stands at 228,494. Around 56% of companies incorporated during the month were registered as private limited companies, 41% as single member companies and the remaining 3% as public unlisted companies, not for profit associations, and limited liability partnerships. Around 99.8% companies were registered online.

The information technology sector took the lead with incorporation of 431 companies, trading with 401 companies, services with 367, real estate development & construction with 269, tourism with 144, ecommerce with 133, food & beverages with 122, education with 113, marketing & advertisement with 75, mining & quarrying with 64 and healthcare with 62. Furthermore, pharmaceutical with 58, textile, and transport with 56 each, power generation with 54, engineering with 53, chemical with 52, corporate agricultural farming with 51, fuel & energy with 49, cosmetics & toiletries with 45, auto & allied with 36, cables & electric goods with 32, communications with 27, lodging with 24, paper & board with 17, sports & allied with 16, arts & culture with 12 and 114 companies were registered in other sectors. Foreign investment has been reported in 63 new companies, mainly received from Afghanistan, Australia, China, Germany, Libya, Malaysia, Sudan, Sir Lanka, Switzerland, Turkey and Vietnam. The major chunk of investment was received from China in 45 companies, Afghanistan, and Malaysia in 4 each, Germany with 3 and remaining countries with 1 each.